Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Announces 2015 Inductees

Rosanne Cash, Mark James, Craig Wiseman and Even Stevens will each be inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame this fall. The tunesmiths have been announced as the Hall of Fame's Class of 2015.

Cash will be inducted in the songwriter / artist category, while James and Wiseman are being inducted in the songwriter category, and Stevens is being honored in the veteran songwriter category.

"Nashville remains the primary destination for anyone with an appreciation of songwriters and the art of songwriting," says Pat Alger, chair of the organization's Board of Directors. "Since 1970, the legacy of those great songwriters has been celebrated and preserved by the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Each year, only a few are elected to this high honor, and this year, we are proud to welcome the class of 2015."

Cash has released more than a dozen studio albums, including her No. 1 2014 The River & the Thread album, and is responsible for penning some of her biggest hits, including “Seven Year Ache,” “Blue Moon With Heartache” and “Hold On.” She was also recently named the Country Music Hall of Fame's artist-in-residence for this year.

James, meanwhile, has written some of the biggest hits, among all genres, of the last few decades. His list of credits includes B.J. Thomas' "Hooked on a Feeling," "Moody Blue" by Elvis Presley and Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind." Wiseman's songs, too, have dominated the charts for much of the last 20 years. Among his numerous credits are Tim McGraw's "Live Like You Were Dying," Kenny Chesney's "The Good Stuff" and Chris Young's "Voices."

Stevens wrote several of Eddie Rabbitt's hits, including "I Love a Rainy Night," "Drivin' My Life Away" and "Suspicions." He also wrote Conway Twitty's "Crazy in Love," Ricky Skaggs' "Lovin' Only Me" and "Love Will Turn You Around" by Kenny Rogers.

The four new inductees will join the 196 existing members of the organization when they are officially inducted during the 45^th Anniversary Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala on Oct. 11 at the Music City Center. Tickets for the event are $250 and can be ordered  by e-mailing hoftix@nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com or by calling 615-460-6556.